Querida Mía
by Kori Suketchi
Summary: After Paul and Jesse’s brawl at the hot tub party, things have gotten complicated for Suze. Brad avoids her and people whisper about her. At least Jesse is there to comfort her. But Paul has lesson plans for Suze. Starting with one day in 1850.
1. Bradley

Querida de Mío

Summery:  A month after Paul and Jesse's brawl at the hot tub party, things have almost gone back to normal at the Ackerman house.  Almost.  How can Susannah Simon concentrate when her class thinks her boyfriend is imaginary and Brad is acting so weird around her?  Not to mention those stolen glances Jesse's been giving her.  But what worries Suze most of all is the fact that Paul Slater has been quiet this entire time, even about their little promise up in shadowland. 

The truth is he's just planning a little lesson about the gifts of a shifter, starting with one day in 1850.

In the battle of the shifters, Jesse's would-be murder is at stake.  But Susannah has to decide what's more important: Jesse's love or his life?

Prologue:

_I was running._

_I heard something close behind me, but it didn't matter.  That's not what I was escaping._

_In a fog-filled hallway, I was leaving behind something terrible.  Something tragically terrible that would tear me apart.  And it was for the best._

_I found that glowing red door and groped for the handle.  Opening the door, I saw nothing more._

Chapter 1:

"Jeez, Suze, get much sleep last night?"

I was rummaging around in my locker like a zombie when I heard CeeCee say my name.  I looked up from grabbing my Chemistry book and saw both her and Adam standing by me.  I probably looked horrible too.  I didn't get much sleep from all the tossing and turning last night.  Stupid dreams.  For about a week now, I've been having that dream with the foggy hallway except now it was different.  No falling, no blue-eyed maniacs, not even my 18th century boyfriend.  Just little me, alone, in shadowland.  And trust me; I would _never_ go to shadowland alone.  I've only been there twice now.  And the first time was at the risk of my own life to save said 18th century boyfriend, Jesse, from eternal wandering.  

Trust me, it was worth it.  Jesse de Silva is a hottie from old California in the days of petticoats and ranchers, or something like that.  Now his ghost is still here, and nobody is quite sure why.  Still, that gives him and me a great chance at dating – or courting, whatever they called it back then.  Sure, he hasn't got a pulse, but that hasn't stopped us before.  Get your mind out of the gutter, nothing like that.  Just a few kisses, all of which have been mind-shattering. Although I do wish he'd do that more often.  I had no idea a ghost could be such a great kisser, but it's not like I go around testing that theory.

Anyway, yes, Jesse was the first reason for my little visit to the smoky views of shadowland.  The second was an impromptu escape route from a hot tub party.  My two idiot stepbrothers decided to throw a keg party while the folks were away and guess what happened?  One ghost tries to drown his brother while Jesse and Paul duke it out on the deck.  Not really great for our social standing at Mission Academy, especially when it looks like I'm talking to thin air.  After ridding myself of the ghost sibling, Paul struck a deal with me.  As long as he didn't mess with Jesse, I would let him teach me about being a shifter. 

And here I thought for seventeen years I was a mediator.  According to Paul, they're different.  Unlike Father Dom and Jack (Paul's little brother who I liked much more) we apparently have other powers besides just talking to ghosts.  Going to shadowland by sheer will seems to be one of those, as I learned before. 

If it was anyone else, I would be glad to have such a good deal.  But it's not.  It's Paul Slater.  The same Paul Slater who didn't help his brother when he was freaking out over the mediator thing, the same guy who stood there while I almost died, the same guy who tried to force himself on me when I was at his house.  So you can see why I wasn't too eager to be around him, right?  Not when things were going so nicely between Jesse and me, who I might add doesn't know about this arrangement.  Thankfully, Paul hasn't taken me up on my promise, and I'm kinda hoping he never will.  I'm all for finding a way to help Jesse, but spending time with Paul is one of the last things I want to do.

But just to throw another complication into the mix, Mr. Slater – Or should I say Dr. Slaski – Paul's very own grandfather tells me to stay away from shadowland and not believe a word Paul says. 

I swear someone up there hates me.  Or at least laughing hysterically.

Anyway, here I was, sleep deprived at school and not exactly looking my hottest.  As I gathered my things and the three of us walked out to lunch, we passed by the table of the school stars which included Brad, Kelly, Debbie, and their clones.  You know that group. The air-headed-watch-my-peroxide-hair-swish-in-the-wind group.  Yeah, them.  I could hear Kelly Prescott talking to Debbie, "Oh, there she goes."

I didn't even need to turn around to know they were talking about me.  Ever since that party at our house, I was branded as weirdo.  Although I can't really blame them since I am.   Being able to see ghosts isn't usually on the top-ten list of things normal girls do.  What did bug me though was that I knew what they were smirking about. 

Jesse.

I'm pretty sure everyone at that party heard me talking to Jesse when it was clear – to them anyway – that there was no one there.  Since then, I've been marked as a freak with an imaginary boyfriend.  Now, they can mock me all they want since I can just break their fingers in retaliation but no one messes with my Jesse.  Not Paul, not Kelly, no one.  But I haven't got a single bit of evidence to show that he exists.  Except maybe the tombstone, but somehow I think that would just make matters worse.

CeeCee just frowned and said, "C'mon, don't pay attention to them."  Ah, CeeCee, my brave friend.  She was the only one that knew about Jesse's secret.  I'm not quite sure how much she did figure out, like the whole mediator thing, but she did know about Jesse.  And not even Gina knew about that.  Adam on the other hand, was completely clueless. But that didn't stop him from defending me.  He took up CeeCee's example and said that he knew Jesse wasn't a figment of my imagination.  As we walked to our usual bench to eat, I heard Brad at the table mumble, "Stop, you guys."

That was surprise.  Dopey Brad was taking a stand, no matter how small, for me?  Someone stop the presses!  My stepbrother has decency!  Although it might just be insanity, to be honest.  Brad's been acting weird ever since that day.  I don't think it was just because of that long, loud lecture he and Jake got either.  He's been avoiding me.  But then, everyone was doing that nowadays. 

CeeCee and Adam were engaged in a conversation about Mr. Walden's pop quiz, when someone decided to materialize right in front of me.  A certain someone with tight black pants and that sexy scar right on his eyebrow.  I almost fell off the bench in surprise, but thankfully caught myself.  Jesse smirked at me.  And damn does it look good on him.  Jesse's been doing a lot of things that surprise me lately.  He still visits my room once in awhile, just to talk, or read in the corner while I'm doing homework.  But I swear that once in awhile, I catch him gazing at me.  Really, gazing.  No one gazes at me.  Leer, maybe.  Scowl, of course.  But not gaze.  Somehow I find this extremely pleasing, and I grin the rest of the way through my homework.  And from a glance, I think he was doing the same.

But before I can get my heart to stop beating like crazy, I have to wonder what he's doing here.  Jesse never visits me during school.  Sure, he just lives – err, stays anyway – at the rectory close by, but it's just too risky.  If he saw Paul, they might have another duel over me.  While an amusing thought, I can't take the chance.  I stare at him and glance around nervously, hoping he'd get my silent message 'What are you doing here?'

He did and said, "_Querida_, Father Dominic requests that we meet with him."

I blinked in surprise.  We?  Uh, oh.  I turn to Adam and CeeCee, "Hey, I just remembered something I have to do.  Make sure no one takes my stuff, ok?" 

CeeCee looked at me shrewdly.  She never asked about Jesse or the ghost thing after that day at the cannoli stand, but I could tell she was dying to know.  But with Adam and most of the school out there, it wasn't exactly the place to ask questions.  Adam looked up from his sandwich and said, "That's alright, Suze.  Can I have some of your soda, though?"

CeeCee rolled her eyes behind him and said, "Fine.  But you and I are going to have a little talk later, ok?"  She turned back to Adam and kept talking about the answer to number thirteen.

Great, from one disastrous talk to another.  I stood up and walked next to Jesse as we both headed for the principal's office.  I couldn't ask him directly without looking like I was talking to myself, so I just gently tugged his sleeve and gave him a questioning look.  He looked down at me – Jesse had to because he was more than a head taller than me – and said, "I don't know what the father wants either, Susannah.  Although I can guess what, I suppose."  He looked a bit sheepish.  I couldn't blame him.  Discussing your odd love life with a priest, no matter how friendly the terms are between us, will always and forever be uncomfortable. 

I groaned quietly at this.  Jesse laughed and put his arm around me, which I must say instantly put me in better mood, "Don't worry, _querida_.  It can't be too bad.  The father isn't the type who would come between us."  We had been walking by Kelly's table again at the time, and Brad had his head in his hands.  Like he was upset or something.  Maybe he thought if he'd go blind if he looked at me. No one took notice of him though, except maybe Debbie who was trying to cheer him up.  But I couldn't worry about him at the moment, I had my own problems.

I had to admit though, Jesse had a point.  Father Dom would never tear us apart, right?  He had been in love once and with a ghost no less.  If he took Jesse away, who knows what I would do?  Probably hurt some people, honestly.

We finally came to Father Dom's door.  Jesse knocked before opening the door for me.  I love when he does that.  Granted, to anyone else, it would've looked like I was opening the door with the power of my mind, but everyone was at lunch so it was cool.  Father Dom was there of course, behind his desk looking through some papers.  He looked up at us with his baby blues.  Jesse hastily took away his arm from around my shoulders, seeing where he was looking.   I love Father Dominic like a, well, father – or grandfather, I guess – and all but he's such a stickler for etiquette.  I mean, it had taken forever to get Jesse cozy with me.  Cut a girl some slack. 

He said kindly, "Please sit down, both of you."  We did, each taking a comfy leather seat in front of his desk.  "Now, I suppose you both know why I want to talk to you."  Jesse and I glanced nervously at each other.  I wasn't scared or anything, but we were afraid of what the good father might make of us.  He sighed as he looked at me first, then to Jesse.  "I want you to know right now that it's not that I disapprove of your… being together."  I let out a breath of relief I didn't know I was holding.  But it was caught again when he added, "But I want you two to consider carefully what you are doing."

Jesse and I knew what we were doing.  We both talked about it that day at his grave.  He could never actually meet my friends or family.  We could never get married or have kids.  But that didn't matter to us.  What did nag me at the back of my mind though was something that Paul had said. 

_"You're just holding him back."_

I know I shouldn't trust anything he says, but I couldn't help but wonder.  Was I really holding Jesse back?  I know he's a bit sensitive when it comes to being dead, but when it's about us, we don't mind.  Was I just a big roadblock on Jesse's stairway to heaven?  That would make me the worst mediator ever, wouldn't it?  Almost as bad as that thing I did with the RLS Angels sometime ago.

But Jesse came through.  He reached over and grabbed my hand, saying, "We know, Father."  It was a very simple statement, but it felt like such a burden lifted off of me.  I squeezed his hand in mine and smiled at him.

Father Dom sighed again and looked between the two of us.  "I thought you might feel that way.  Very well, Jesse.  Susannah.  I can only wish you two the best."  Without really meaning to, I stood up and gave Father Dom the biggest hug.  Now, I'm not usually the touchy-feely type but it really meant a lot to me.  That he didn't mind, I mean.  I don't always look for Father Dom's approval on stuff, but this was important to me. And Jesse.

Both Father Dom and Jesse looked surprised by my sudden display.  Father Dom looked embarrassed and patted me awkwardly on the shoulder, "Now, Susannah, did you really think I would do something drastic?"

I let go, much to his relief, and said smiling up at him, "Well, no.  But it's good to know you're ok with it." 

Father Dom smiled back, "I'm glad you hold me in so much esteem, Susannah.  If only you listened to me on other more important matters."

I blinked up at him in surprise and asked, "What matters?"  I turned to Jesse to see if he knew, but he was looking at Father Dom questioningly as well.

"That _incident_ a month ago..."   Oh.  _That_ matter.  After the Jesse vs. Paul bout, Father Dom gave Jesse a lecture I wasn't allowed to be informed on.  Afterwards, I had my own little lecture about booze parties and the evils of fighting.  But since we eventually got to the reason Jesse exploded at Paul, Father D found out about everything that happened back at Paul's place.  And I mean everything.  From Dr. Slaski's shifter information to Paul putting the moves on me.  Needless to say, Father Dom had a better scope about how much a jerk Paul could be.  Assault is on Father D's list of things never to do to a woman.  I guess there is an upside to his etiquette thing after all.  I did make him promise not to tell Jesse though.  Even though Jesse had an idea of what happened, all the facts put together might make him seek bloody murder or something.

Father Dom looked at us meaningfully, "I wanted to talk to you two about Bradley."


	2. The Talk

A/N:  Does the masculine "mío" refer back to the querida or to the speaker?  Once I get that confirmed, I'll change the title.  To be honest, I haven't taken Spanish in a year.  After four years of it, I realized it wasn't something I wanted to do and dropped it.  I knew it would come back and haunt me.  (Pardon the pun)

Also, the Paul Assault thing – I just chalk it up to Suze exaggerating like any teenage girl would if something like that happened.  Even though it's slight SI Possession, if that happened to me, I wouldn't have a lot of love for the guy either. 

And Jesse's door opening – well, I thought about this and wondered about that one part in the second book where Jesse picked up a pillow from the floor and hit Suze in the face with it.  I know that new ghosts have a hard time picking up things (i.e. the RLS Angels) but Jesse seems to have no problem picking up Spike or books to read.

And I do intend to make this a rather lengthy fanfic.  Summer break and graduation are coming up this week so I have time to fill up before being shipped off to college.  Happy reading.

Chapter 2:

"What?"  I stared at Father D blankly.  Jesse looked equally surprised and raised his eyebrows.  He didn't really visit my other family members, obviously.  What would be the point?  Well, except David that one time.  But that was because I was going up against a crazed undead cheerleader.  "What does Brad have to do with this?"

Father Dom shook his head sadly, "I'm afraid that ever since then, Bradley's been a little… off track.  His grades are dropping considerably."

Brad's never been a star student, so I couldn't really see the point. "So?"

"So," Father D continued, "I believe that he's been a bit disturbed by what happened at the party."  He actually looked concerned for Brad.  "From what I can gather from both of your accounts, I think that Bradley heard Jesse threatening Mr. Slater."

Jesse stiffened and asked, confused, "He can hear me?"

I groaned and sat back down in the chair.  I had completely forgotten that Brad could hear Jesse.  That was the original blackmail that he was using for the party.  If I said a word, he would tell Mom that Jesse was visiting me at night, and we all know how that would look in a parent's eyes.  It's not like I could explain the truth. 

Jesse stood beside me, worried. "Are you all right, _querida_?"

"I'm fine, Jesse.  I just completely forgot to tell you about Brad," I explained, leaning back in the chair and looking at him. "He was going to tell my mom that you were sneaking into my room at night.  And even if Mom and Andy didn't blow a gasket, they'd want to meet you and we both know how that would end up." I attempted to blow a loose strand of hair away from my face but in vain.  Jesse finally tucked it behind my ear for me.

"I see." He sighed in a resigned sort of way and looked back at Father Dom. "So you are saying that this Brad is disturbed because he can hear and not see me, Father?"

Father D nodded.  "I think it might be best to explain to him that he isn't hearing voices in his head."

I sat up straight immediately and said, "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"  He wasn't really suggesting it, was he?  I had worked so hard to keep my freakiness to myself.  If I was going to tell anyone point blank about this mediating stuff, I always thought it would be my mom.  Or CeeCee.

Father Dom looked at me gravely. "I am saying, Susannah, that you should tell Brad that Jesse is real."  He turned to Jesse, "And you need to be present to prove it."

"No way.  No freaking way.  I am _not_ telling Brad about the ghost business."  I stubbornly crossed my arms.  I was probably acting like a kid, but hey, why should I tell Brad anything?  Let him think he was going nuts.

"You can't possibly have me believe that you'd rather have your brother suffer from a mental breakdown."  Father D's eyes were wide with disbelief.  He did kinda have a point though.  With Jack, I saw how not understanding the mediating thing could ruin someone's life.  Hell, I already had to convince my mom and several therapists about my mental health before, and that was _with_ the knowledge I wasn't crazy.

I got up reluctantly and glanced at Jesse to see what he thought of this.  He, of course, was just standing there neutrally with his arms crossed and looking at me expectantly.  Father Dom had practically the same expression.  "Oh, fine!"  I said at last.  "I'll tell Brad, but just enough to let him know he's not crazy.  Don't blame me though if he doesn't take me seriously."

Father D smiled up at me from his seat, "You're doing the right thing, Susannah." I guess I owed him one anyway.  Last time I didn't listen to Father Dom about telling my family, Jesse's cousin went on a rampage in the basilica, which almost ended up with both me and Jesse stuck in shadowland.  On the upside, I did get to bash Maria's head against the railing.

I turned to the door to go back to lunch when I felt the familiar strong hand on my shoulder.   Jesse said, "Have a good day, _querida_.  Just call when you need me."

I smiled back up at him, "I will, Jesse."  I gave him a quick peck on the cheek before leaving.  Sure, it was in full view of Father Dom, but it was becoming a habit.  Jesse just had that effect on me.

Lunch was almost over when I got back, but I did get a quick bite to eat.  Adam and CeeCee welcomed me back and CeeCee gave me that look again.  I just mouthed to her, "Later."  I had to deal with the whole Brad thing before even attempting to come clean with CeeCee.   

She did manage to corner me into the conversation after school though. 

After school, Adam drove CeeCee and me to the Coffee Clutch.  We were just hanging out at table while Adam was ordering when she asked me, "So, have you decided yet, Suze?"

I had no clue what she was talking about so I asked, "Decide what?"

"If you're going to tell me about Jesse.  The truth."  It was just one of those days, wasn't it? But then she continued, "Seriously, Simon, I've already done a bit of research on this and –"

"Whoa!" I was definitely caught off guard with that remark. "What do you mean 'research'?"  I had Google-d the mediator thing to death and know for a fact there's nothing really useful there.  Just some new age bull about chakras or something.

CeeCee leaned forward and said quietly, "I know about that new grave on the Mission's grounds.  And don't forget that _you_ told me about Hector de Silva's disappearance in the 1850's when that body was dug up in your backyard.  Not to mention that the grave itself says Hector "_Jesse_" de Silva.  I'm not blind, Simon."  Damn, she got me.  CeeCee was way too smart for her own good.

I put my head in my hands, cursing her journalist skills.  Finally, I looked her straight in the eye and said, "Friday night.  Your place, all right?"  As long as I was coming out about this to Brad, I might as well trust my friend who figured out half the story already.

Unfortunately Adam chose that moment to overhear as he walked back to us, coffee in hand.  "Cool, what's going on at CeeCee's Friday?"

"Nothing," I said a little too quickly.

"Aw, c'mon, you guys."  He sat down and looked at us dejectedly. "The two of you have something going on and I'm all left out.  I know it."  When we refused to meet his eye, he said, "Fine, if you won't tell me, Suze, I'll just get CeeCee to tell me later."

CeeCee looked at me pleadingly with those big violet eyes of hers and I sighed.  I knew for a fact that CeeCee could deny Adam nothing.  If he so much as even smiled at her, she would break and the whole story would come crashing out.  Personally I think they should just get it over with and ask each other out, but that's another story.

I told him firmly, "Anything you hear tomorrow night _never_ leaves your lips.  Got it?"

Adam put a hand on his chest in mock astonishment, "I can't believe you'd think I'd even dream of it."

CeeCee said, "We're serious, Adam.  This is something really major.  Not a word of it to anyone else."  I knew CeeCee would keep him in line.  Besides, I think she really wanted to know about the ghost thing.

He screwed up his face in uncertainty, "This isn't a 'girl' thing, is it?"

We both rolled our eyes.  I said, a bit annoyed at the assumption, "No.  Just keep quiet and we'll tell you tomorrow."

Just as we were about to get up and head home, I hear the familiar voice belonging to someone I did not need to see right now.  Not today, the day of 'talks.' "Fancy meeting you here, Suze."

I took a deep breath and turned around.  Flashing him a sarcastic smile, I said shortly, "Paul."

Paul Slater was standing there in his chinos and polo shirt, looking like the model guy for some country club.  His brown curly hair was mussed a bit from the wind outside, but it looked good on him.  And I didn't care one bit.  His blue eyes were twinkling with something devious. 

I asked, "Well, something you wanted to say?"

He smiled and said, "I just thought you'd like to know that your first lesson is tomorrow.  During lunch."

CeeCee asked behind me, "Lessons?"

Paul said, "Oh, it's just something Suze and I have going on."  He put a finger to his lips, "It's a secret though."  I wanted to punch him right there.  He had such a knack for phrasing things in the most irritable and easily manipulative way possible. 

I decided to cut the conversation short. "Fine, I'll meet you at lunch tomorrow.  Just make it quick, alright?" 

"Oh, don't worry.  I'm testing it out tonight to make sure it goes well."  I should have spotted it right there.  If I wasn't so worried about telling Brad or CeeCee I might've been able to prevent what happened.  But I didn't. 

Instead, I said, "If that's all, we're leaving. Bye."  I hurried CeeCee and Adam out of the Coffee Clutch and back to the car.  I didn't want to spend anymore time in there with Paul because I could already notice the looks I was getting from other classmates hanging out there.  As if my reputation wasn't damaged enough, Paul, the guy who – according to the rest of the class – had gotten a little too drunk at the hot tub party, was asking me to meet him during lunch alone.  Yeah, that'll go over well tomorrow.

As CeeCee and I piled into the Volkswagen Beatle, Adam asked, "So what was that about?  Is he tutoring you in something?"

I replied, "Something like that.  Maybe I'll tell you about that tomorrow night too."  I saw in the rearview mirror CeeCee's eyes go wide.  I suppose she hadn't quite gotten the Paul link into this down. 

I was dropped off at my house, just in time for dinner.  Andy had made spaghetti with garlic bread.  We sat down as one big happy family and began to eat.  The men inhaled their food, as usual, but I noticed that Brad didn't look up from his plate to make any snide comments.  I guess tonight was as good as any other night to tell him.  I just hope he appreciates what I'm doing by telling him.  After all, I could've just let him be shipped off to Bellevue.

I was just wondering what that particular situation would be like when my mom decided to start a conversation, "Oh, Suzie, I just found out their having a sale at a dress shop my co-worker recommended to me.  Would you like to go and pick out something for prom?"

I stopped midway of taking a piece of garlic bread, "Prom?  Mom, that's months away."  Besides, the guy I love can't exactly go with me.  Well, he could but no one would know and – You see where this going, right?

But that didn't stop her.  Mom looked at me hopefully, "I know, but I was just thinking that if you had someone in mind then…"

And then Jake just had to add in, "Suze already likes someone."  Stupid, stupid, stupid!  Mom isn't supposed to know about Jesse!  Normally I'm on good terms with Jake after he and David saved me that night at the Mission Academy, but that was the dumbest thing to have ever come out of his mouth.

Mom perked up and Andy asked, "Oh?  Who is it?"  Andy's been a bit more fatherly towards me after the hot tub incident.  Like I needed someone to keep an eye on me.  Yeah, right.  As if I didn't have enough people watching my every move.

I glared at my stepbrothers, daring them to say a word.  Jake, for letting the cat out of the bag, and at David and Brad, since they already knew the rumors around school.   I said coolly, "Just a guy."

Andy raised an eyebrow, "It wasn't that boy who broke the door, was it?"  Even though the door was relatively easy to replace, it was the fact that someone had actually been thrown through it that bugged Andy.  Can't say I really blame him. 

Even though technically Jesse had been involved with that, that wasn't who Andy was talking about so I answered, "No, different guy."

"And when were you planning on introducing us, Suzie?" Mom asked. 

"Mom, I've only been seeing him for a little while," I replied, "You don't want me to scare him off, do you?"  Yes, the best tactic.  Make her think that she's jeopardizing my chances so she won't ask him to dinner.  Not that he ate anyway.

"Of course not, honey," Andy replied.  He was calling me that again.   I suppose he thought it made us closer, which I have to admit we have been.  One time he was teaching me to make simple pasta and that worked out pretty well.  "We would just like to meet this young man.  To make sure he's all right."  Maybe that depended on your definition of 'all right.'

I responded vaguely, "Yeah… I'll think about it," and kept eating my spaghetti to avoid having to talk.  David, who thankfully knew I wanted to change the subject, started talking about how tonight there was some sort of space thing called a supernova. It was when a star exploded and the aftermath was going to last all this weekend.  I gotta love the little guy for helping a girl out.

So after dinner, I cleared the table – it was my turn tonight – and by the time I finished, everyone had gone off to their respective places.  Mom and Andy were in their room watching TV, Jake went to his job delivering 'za, David was outside with his telescope trying to witness that star thing from before, and Brad was shut up in his room with the music blaring.  It was now or never.

I went up the steps and knocked on Brad's door.


	3. Stay

Chapter 3:

"All right, I'll turn down the music!" yelled Brad from inside. The music was lowered just a fraction but still blaring through the door.

I got that déjà vu vibe before replying, "It's me, Brad. I need to talk to you."

There was a pause and he said roughly, "Can't it wait?"

The music started to turn back up. I snorted with impatience, "No, it can't." When the volume was still going up, I added, "I know you can hear him, Brad." The music cut off abruptly and there was long pause.

His door opened a crack and Brad peeked through, looking down at me. Well, more like glared. Like it was my fault he could hear Jesse and possibly other ghosts. The things I do for my family. He even had the nerve to say, "You're freaking nuts." But of course, he didn't say 'freaking.'

Normally, I would've left it at that, but I remembered what Father Dom had said. No one deserves a nervous breakdown after all. So I said, "Look, just let me in and I'll explain everything. Do you want to know the absolute truth or not?" As thick-headed as Brad is, I could see this caught his interest. He reluctantly opened his door enough for me to walk in.

The room was same as before. An odd odor bouquet of gym socks and baby powder, clothes thrown everywhere, and an unmade bed. Brad closed the door and sat back down on the workout bench he was presumably on before I interrupted him. He looked at me expectantly. "Well?"

"Jesus, how do I even start?" I paced a little in front of him. This was making me a lot more nervous than I thought it would. I mean, I can't just say 'hey, I see ghosts and you can apparently hear my boyfriend who is one. What's up with that?' So I decided to start off where Brad apparently knew. "Ok. First: Jesse. You can hear him, right?" Brad nodded grudgingly. It didn't seem like he was too willing to admit that he was sharing what were apparently hallucinations with his stepsister. "So when did you? Start hearing him, I mean?"

Brad grimaced as he thought about it. Must be pretty hard to dust off the old gears upstairs, if you know what I mean. He said finally, "Last summer. I heard you in David's room for some reason. I was going to get up and tell you to shut up or get out, but then I heard that guy's voice too." Brad added, "Thought it was just your newest crush victim until… you know, the party."

So _that_ was it. Brad's room is on the other side of the hall, right next to David's. He had heard me explaining to Jesse about Maria and her affinity for knives. I wondered how much he heard. "Did you listen to what we were talking about?" I asked, glaring a bit.

"I could only hear you when you weren't crying," It looked like he would've sneered at me if his sanity wasn't on the line. "So I only heard something about that Jesse guy and a Maria. You were talking too fast." Good, so there was nothing too embarrassing in there.

I continued, "Well… do you remember that skeleton we found in the backyard?"

He frowned up at me, "What does that have to do with anything?" God, how hard is it to put two and two together? Did he think that Jesse was just invisible and hanging out at our house for fun?

I spelled it out for him. "They're the same person, Brad."

Now that really caught his attention. Brad's eyes widened considerably and he said, "That's _him_?! You're dating the dead guy we found under the porch?!" He sounded really freaked. Or maybe it was revulsion.

I scowled at him and explained, "I met him before that, stupid. Jesse's been here for 150 years. He only just moved out." I didn't really want to go into the reason why he had to. I mean, I'd have to explain the whole Maria/Diego thing that led up to the exorcism and then the kissing and then Paul. It was just way too complicated. I'd need to write a book or something. Then again, Brad didn't seem like the reading type.

This didn't really calm Brad down. Screwing up his face in disgust, he said, "He's a _ghost_? Sick_…_!" He made it sound like I was dating the corpse and not a ghost. I hate it when people get the wrong idea. Jesse looks just as hot as he did years ago, thank you very much. Ghosts don't even show signs of how they died or their death age sometimes. They usually pick when they were most comfortable and sprightly and just go from there. When Brad finally pulled his thoughts together, he demanded, "Why the hell are you dating a ghost then? You can't see him."

Ah, the golden question. Taking a breath, I just said it. In simple words so he could understand. "I _can_ see him, Brad. I see ghosts. It's what I do." I waited for a reaction. Any reaction. When I didn't get one, I raised my gaze away from my nervously fidgeting feet and to him again.

Brad just stared at me and asked, "Like that kid in the movie?" Ugh. I _knew_ that was coming. I wish people wouldn't associate me with that whiny kid. Why not Buffy? Her boyfriend was undead too. And she kicked a lot of paranormal butt.

I rubbed the bridge of my nose in frustration and just went with it, "Yes, Brad, like that kid in the movie. I see dead people, all right?" Elaborating, I continued, "I'm called a mediator. I help dead people move on to whatever it is they do normally after they die." I decided not to go into the shifter thing. Even I didn't understand the whole thing with that. Not yet anyway.

It still felt really weird to be explaining all of this to Brad. If I was ever going to explain everything to one of my stepbrothers, I thought it would be David, the sensible one. Or if not him, Jake, since he looks after me like a big brother should. Granted this is probably the closest Brad and I have ever been – and probably ever will be – to bonding, but it just goes to show it takes nothing less than possible mental crisis and the paranormal to bring us together.

Brad asked, "Then how come I can hear that Jesse guy and not see him?"

"I dunno." I ran a hand through my hair as I thought about that – a habit I picked up from Jesse. Ever since Brad suddenly voiced that he knew about Jesse, I asked myself the same question. Out of everyone it could have possibly been in Carmel, it was my middle stepbrother who could hear him. I thought back to how Father D had explained it to me. "Some people can just notice them better than others. Animals can do it too, that's why Max doesn't come near my room." Personally I chalked it up to Brad having the same mentality as Max, but I wasn't about to tell him that at the moment.

"What about that ugly cat?" Who could forget Spike, the maniac furball? If Jesse wasn't so taken with him, I would've just shipped him off to a shelter. A nice shelter though, to be honest, unless I wanted to upset that ghost of a little boy. At least his afterlife-preventing problem was just the concern over his lost pet.

I rolled my eyes at the thought of that flat-faced menace anyway. He was probably getting cozy with Jesse at that very second while I handled this. "Exact opposite. Spike is all Jesse's and the thing absolutely hates me."

Brad eyed me suspiciously and asked, "How do I know you're not just crazy like they say you are? Maybe we're _both_ cracked out of our minds." He crossed his arms and dared me to explain otherwise.

I shrugged, "You asked for it." Before he could ask what I meant, I called out both mentally and aloud, "Jesse!"

Ever faithfully, Jesse appeared out of thin air right next to me. He looked around curiously; maybe he had never been Brad's room before which was entirely possible. Dunno if they had barbells in 1850, like the ones Brad had strewn under the workout bench. I just figured Jesse had kept in impeccable shape because he was a rancher. Of course, this led to thoughts of him on horseback, like Tom Cruise in that movie _Far and Away_, looking as hot as ever. In fact, maybe he'd get a little too hot and take off his shirt…

I was forced back to reality when Jesse turned to me and asked pleasantly, "You called, _querida_?" I had to wipe that lecherous grin off my face before he noticed.

Brad stood up and looked around fearfully, having heard him. "Seriously, Suze, that's not cool. He's in here, isn't he?" He took a couple of steps back towards his bed, tripping over one of the weights on the floor.

I ignored him though and said to Jesse, "Um, I guess just talk to him. Let him know you're not the boogieman or something."

He raised an eyebrow at the boogieman comment, though I don't think he knew what it meant. But he introduced himself formally anyway, "Hello, Brad. My name is Hector de Silva, but you may call me Jesse." He glanced over at me uncertainly, "I see Susannah has explained at least partially about this."

"Just the part about being a mediator and how long you've been here," I told him.

"Yeah…" Brad shifted uncomfortably from where he was standing. There was no other exit besides the one right behind me, so escape was impossible. Instead, he asked, "So, how do I know you're not just some voice in my head?"

Jesse looked around the room and spotted Brad's messy bed. Without moving himself, Jesse had the sheets straightening themselves and the pillow in its proper spot. It looked just like that scene from Mary Poppins, I swear. Even I thought that was pretty cool. Now how come Jesse never cleaned up after himself when he goes through all my CDs and books, huh?

"Whoa," Brad looked impressed despite himself. He looked in Jesse's general direction and asked, "What else can you do?"

Jesse said simply, "Nothing I'm willing to show here." I glanced at him, eyebrow raised. I knew Jesse was pretty powerful for a ghost, having been one for 150 years. But even though I've known him for a while, I haven't seen him do anything major besides use his powers to rip nails out of shutters. Which was still pretty cool, you gotta admit.

Brad was disappointed though at the lack of special effects. He muttered like a spoiled kid, "Aw… what a load of bull."

Even though I had used worse language myself, Jesse suggested politely, "You should watch your language in front of ladies, Brad." Funny how his Old World manners makes him all the more endearing to me. No one else in a million years would consider me a lady.

Brad seemed to think the same. "Lady?" He glanced at me doubtfully, "Yeah, right."

I was about to give him a piece of my mind, when Jesse attempted to explain, "Susannah _is_ a bit… " Oh, now they were both talking as if I wasn't here. Great. Brad starts talking to Jesse for five minutes and he's already having a bad influence on him.

Before I could ask what he meant, Jesse had a sharp intake of breath. Like he was hurt. Scared, I asked quietly, "Jesse?"

Brad asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"

Jesse put a tanned hand over his chest and whispered with a pained expression, "_Nombre de Dios…_" And doubled over, sweating and shaking.

Brad could only hear Jesse being hurt and looked wildly around where I was. He looked almost panicked. "What's going on?"

I was kneeling by him now, completely terrified as to what was happening. I was practically hysterical, "Jesse?! Jesse, what's wrong?!" This was _not_ good. If Jesse was alive, I would've thought he had been shot. He was in so much pain that in between his Spanish curses were cries of agony. Jesse kept his hand fisted into his shirt, twisting as if trying to stop whatever it was that was hurting him. And that's when he started to flicker.

Ghosts do not flicker. They shimmer, appear out of nowhere, and occasionally pop into existence, but they never flicker like a light running out juice. But that's how Jesse looked. I held him as close as I could to me, his head on my shoulder and still curled up tightly. The tears were streaming out of my eyes now. Something was happening and I couldn't stop it. Something terrible. I said pleadingly into his ear, "Please don't go, Jesse…"

I only heard him murmur, "Susannah…" And then he was gone.

A/N: A bit short and sudden. Trust me, I had to do it. There is much more to this story than you think. In the next chapter, more Suze-to-Brad explaining, comforting, and a confession.

Also, Graduation on May 21!!


	4. Forget me not

Chapter 4:

I was in complete shock. One moment, I was cradling Jesse close to me. The next, he's gone. I scrambled to my feet and looked around the room frantically. Hoping that I would see him shimmer back with a smile on his face, like it was just a big joke. But there was only Brad, staring at me like I was insane. He didn't know.

I was suddenly aware that my face was wet with tears. I hastily wipe them away and try to hold back the sobs that leave me trembling. Keyword _try_, as I was obviously not succeeding. When David banged into the room, I still didn't have control of myself.

"Brad! It was the most amazing thing! There was –" He stopped short when he saw me in there as well, crying my eyes out. "Suze..?" I was far too gone to be embarrassed that Brad and David were seeing me like this.

Instead, I just stood up and muttered, "He's gone…" This was a billion times worse than before. At least then, I had known what had happened. Jesse was just stuck somewhere and I had gone to get him. Simple enough once I figured it out. But this was different. Jesse had not been exorcised since there was no swirling vortex into shadowland. And by the look of anguish on his face, Jesse had not moved on either. He was just gone.

There was only one person I could really talk to.

Bolting out Brad's door, I ran to the phone in my room and called up Father Dominic. Once again, someone I didn't know picked up. I cleared my voice as best I could and asked, "Can I speak to Father Dominic?"

A moment later, the kind elderly voice I recognized so well came on to the line, "Yes?"

I let out an unappealing squeak as I stifled as mucus-y sob, "Father Dom, it's happened again."

His voice full of worry and surprise, he asked, "Susannah? What's happened again?" I think he must've realized there was only one other time I came to him crying. "Is it Jesse? Was he-?"

"He's just gone!!" I wept into the phone. "Jesse looked hurt and he fell down and he-" I paused to sniffle unattractively, "He disappeared! That's never happened before!"

"Susannah," Father Dom said kindly, "It pains me to say this, but there may be forces at work here that we can't control."

"No," Something had suddenly clicked in my head. What's wrong with me? Why hadn't I realized it? Irritably wiping away my tears, I said decisively, "Someone's controlling it." And I knew exactly who it was. Who is the only person with a definite grudge against Jesse and has access to forces that _most_ people can't control?

That bastard Paul, that's who.

Father D only asked, bewildered, "Susannah?"

I said hurriedly, "I'll explain tomorrow, Father D. There are some things I have to work out first." Mainly about how many times I was going to punch Paul in the face until he told me what was going on. Then maybe throw in a few extra just for good measure. This was the second time he's sent Jesse away somehow, and this time I had explicitly told him not to. That was the deal! Goes to show how good his word is.

As I hung up the phone, Father D was scolding me, "Susannah, don't you go and –" Whoops. Just a little too late. I felt bad about that, but I already knew what he was going to say, really. Might as well save us both the trouble. If I never actually heard him then I wouldn't be disobeying, right? Yeah, I'll just keep telling myself that.

I was already planning out how I was going to beat answers out Paul tomorrow when I heard a voice at my door, "Suze?"

"David?" Sure enough, my youngest step-brother was peeking through a crack in my door, his red hair plainly visible. I gestured for him to come inside and asked, "Need something?"

He stepped inside, looking awkwardly down at the carpet, "I was just wondering…"

"What happened back there?" I supplied. He nodded. I must've really freaked the little guy out, I guess. Well, maybe less so than Brad, but how often do you see your stepsister bawling for no reason? Not a lot, especially if it's me. I sat down on my bead heavily and explained, "Jesse's missing again, David. And Brad knows."

That made him look up. "Wait, Brad?" David blinked at me, surprised, "He does?"

I sighed, "Yeah, I wouldn't bring it up though. I think I've spooked him enough for one night." I wouldn't have been surprised if Brad continued to avoid me after this little fiasco.

But the David peered at me curiously and asked, "And… who's Jesse?"

I stared at him in shock as I said, "C'mon. You know Jesse." I couldn't believe that little David, our resident scholastic sponge, would have forgotten about his previous encounters with my spectral boyfriend. "Jesse, the ghost who lived here. Remember?"

David looked just as surprised as I was. "Oh… oh, right." He shook his head, as if to clear it. "I must've forgotten." He quickly left without saying goodnight. Let me tell you right now, David does not forget anything. Ever. He probably remembered his first words and who he was talking to.

Was it possible that Jesse's disappearance was having an effect on people?

Weird. I had to fix this, whatever it was and fast. It was too late to seek out Paul and make him tell me where Jesse was. If it was anyone else, I'd go right down, break in, and start the inquisition regardless of whether it was 4 AM. But this was Paul, the guy who had the ghosts of Hell's Angels as minions. Let me repeat that. _Ghost minions_. See, now why couldn't I have a set-up like that? Well, granted, Jesse was my little fringe benefit to the mediating job, but he wasn't here anymore. And whose fault was that? Paul's of course. I just couldn't catch a break, could I?

I had a terrible time sleeping that night, obviously. I had that same dream again. You know, the one in shadowland where I'm running away from something and finally open one of those doors. I never actually see what's inside though. Oh well. With my luck, it was my own personal hell, consisting of Sister Ernestine yelling about proper manners while Paul and Kelly Prescott taunt me about Jesse. Whoop-dee-do. Anyway, that morning, I got ready as quick as I could, eager for once to get to school. Surprisingly, Brad was acting normal. Normal for him anyway, which included snide comments about whatever he decided was funniest at the moment. Today, it was how impatient I was to get to school.

"What's with you?" Brad asked, revealing a chewed up pancake. Eww. "Seeing the principal again about 'student affairs'?" he laughed. I was looking at the bits of food that had flown from his mouth to the table distastefully when I realized that he was implying something else as well. And let me just say: **_EWW_**. I love Father Dom and all, but seriously. What the hell kind of sicko would even suggest such a thing? Maybe if he was forty years younger and not a priest, I might've had some sort of silly schoolgirl crush on him. But now? _Gross_. Instead of telling Brad this in an eloquent and intelligent manner, I whapped him upside the head with my fist. Not hard, just enough to send him sprawling on the floor. It was just the two of us there as David and Jake were still upstairs and Mom and Andy had left already. No one for him to complain to.

As he muttered something not fit for young ears, I said, "If you must know, I need to get to school to talk to some people about Jesse."

He stood up and looked ready to hit back, but stopped and looked at me funny. "Jesse who?"

Oh, god. It was happening to Brad too. "Jesse. The ghost you met last night?" I could've just let Brad forget Jesse. It would've benefited both of us, honestly. He could go back to being an ass and not freaking out, and I could continue to keep Jesse a secret. But somehow, I didn't want him to. Forget Jesse, I mean. No one should forget Jesse. He _was_ here and I'll make sure he comes back here as well.

Brad got that same look of sudden realization that David had last night. His eyes widened and he said in a small voice, "Oh."

When everyone was ready, we piled into the Rambler and went to school. We dropped off Jake first, since he had some big thing to do tonight and would get a ride home in time for dinner. He said it was for a class, but I had my suspicions that it involved somebody with a skirt. It was only hesitantly that Jake gave the keys to Brad. A major trust on his part.

At school, there was another big change I noticed. No one was staring. Not a whisper, not a snicker. Kelly Prescott even came up to me to tell me about the plans she was making for prom. Under normal circumstances, I would be relieved but in this case it only made me more anxious. This whole Jesse thing was affecting everyone now.

Finally, it was lunch. As soon as we were released, I jumped out of my seat and gave a hasty explanation to CeeCee and Adam. Making my way to the inner parts of the Mission grounds, namely the cemetery, I thought about why this was happening. People forgetting, I mean. Even if Jesse unexpectedly disappeared, it wasn't like a lot of people knew him. But even then it was like he suddenly didn't exist at all. I made a mental note to get an answer for this out of Paul. When I got to the end of the path, I was in for a shock.

Jesse's tombstone was blank.

It was still there, but there wasn't a word on it. Just a smooth slab of granite. I kneeled down beside it, almost dirtying my skirt, and inspected everything around it. The earth beneath it looked untouched as if someone just thought to add a headstone without a grave. Something was definitely wrong. This wasn't just about Jesse missing now.

Paul saw me already waiting in the graveyard. "You're early, Suze." He smirked charmingly, "I'm flattered."

I really wasn't in the mood for his simpering. I stood up and looked him dead in the eye, "Cut the crap, Paul." I demanded, "What did you do with Jesse?"

He crossed his arms nonchalantly and leaned against the blank headstone, "I didn't do anything to Mr. De Silva."

I nearly yelled, "Liar! I know you had something to do with what happened last night." There was so much anger in me right now. He was lying directly to my face with that same smug expression. I just really felt the need to break it.

Instead of confirming or denying what I said, Paul just looked up, shielding his eyes with a raised hand. He asked calmly, "Did you watch the stars last night, Suze? They were almost as beautiful as you."

I glared at him for trying to change the subject. "What?"

He looked back at me, a small, knowing smile playing on his lips. "The stars. Did you watch them?" he asked again.

I brushed it off and answered, "No, David did. But what does that-"

He shrugged and looked back up at the blue, clear sky. "Ah, well you still have a chance I suppose." Paul's smile grew wider. "The spectacle lasts all weekend."

I asked, exasperated, "What are you babbling about?" Seriously, I was trying to get some answers out of the guy, and he was talking about the stars. Did he want me to go to the planetarium with him or something? Sorry but no. A little too nerdy for my tastes. The only one who would be remotely interested would be David or possibly CeeCee's Aunt Pru.

Paul turned those devilishly bright eyes to me and replied, "There was a supernova last night, Suze. The death of a star. Happens probably once in a lifetime." He patted the headstone as if for emphasis.

"What does that…?" I trailed off and got a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I did not like the way he said that.

"Lesson number one, Suze," Paul said matter-of-factly. "A shifter can go back in time during the burst of a star."

No. He couldn't have. "You… you didn't." I couldn't believe my ears. My heart started beating wildly in my chest. Paul had changed history. Specifically, he had changed Jesse's history. Somehow, somewhere, Paul Slater had prevented Jesse's death and that was why he wasn't here. Now it was like Jesse had never been here. Any proof that Jesse existed just yesterday was slowly fading away. And no one noticed but me.

They were forgetting because it never happened.

But that wasn't what hurt most of all. It was that now, Jesse had never met me. As selfish as that sounds, it was. He never read books on the bay window of my room. He never coddled Spike on his lap as I did my homework. He never kissed me, right here in this spot in the cemetery. I could swear my heart was breaking right where I stood.

I bit the inside of my lip to keep the tears back since Paul finally answered, "I did." He added, "Now before you go on about not laying a hand on Jesse, I'll have you know I didn't. I just…" he paused as if just now thinking of a loophole, "_talked_ to some people."

I clenched my right hand into a fist at my side, just itching to use it. Tasting the slight metallic hint of blood that meant I had bitten a little too hard, I demanded, "Tell me how. Now." If Paul could do it, so could I.

But he just shook his head in mock sympathy, "Not a chance, Simon. If I told you, you'd get ideas in your head and go marching into 1850. We can't have that now, can we?"

I could barely see straight, I was so angry. He was standing there and holding the one thing I wanted just out of reach. I could only mutter, "You've gone too far, Paul. You've really done it now." I had pulled back my fist and was going to send smashing straight into his eye when I heard someone shriek.

"Miss Simon!" It was Sister Ernestine. I turned to Paul and gave him my deadliest glare, hoping he couldn't see the tears that were welling up. He just smiled as if nothing had happened. The sister had made her way to us and screeched at me, "Miss Simon, if you can't conduct yourself in a civilized manner towards your fellow students, then I suggest you go to the principal's office immediately!"

I huffed, "Gladly." I refused to look at either of them a moment longer and turned on my heel towards Father Dom's office.

A/N: This took longer than usual because of parties and I couldn't find my Haunted book for reference. Kinda crappy, I think.

Next chapter: Father Dom talks, Brad gets bullied by Suze, and it's time to cut class.


	5. The Switch

A/N: I have no excuse for not uploading this chapter except for extreme laziness. Also: other things that needed my squealing attention (such as the new title to Harry Potter 6 and Hayao Miyazaki's adaptation of Howl's Moving Castle). Since I just now found out they're re-releasing the books, I'll start turning more fan attention to Mediator.. in a bit.

To Esodes08: Interestingly enough, I do have a way of covering my ass on that plothole. And it's coming up in this chapter, actually.

Also, has anyone actually looked up Carmel, California? It's absolutely beautiful…

Chapter 5:

I flung open Father Dom's door and sat down angrily in front of his desk.

"Susannah?" Father D himself looked up from his paperwork to stare at me. I was going to meet him that morning, but I guess I was too busy worrying about the memory block thing to come. His blue eyes blinked in surprise as he said, "Goodness, I was so worried you were going to do something brash like-" Father Dom put down his pen with a look of concern and asked, "Oh, dear. You weren't sent here, were you?"

I replied curtly, "Sister Ernestine. I was about to smash Paul's face in."

"Mr. Slater? Good heavens. Why?"

I shook my head, still in disbelief myself. "He did it, Father D. Jesse's gone because of him." At this point, restraining my urge to punch something was making me tremble a bit. Or at least that's what I told myself. I ignored the prickling tears that were threatening to spill and continued, "He went and changed history. People are starting to forget."

"He changed history?" repeated Father Dom in shock. "You mean he prevented Jesse's death." I have to say, the old guy was taking it a hell of a lot better than I had. Father Dom just lowered his head in thought and his fingers steepled. He finally looked at me and asked levelly, "Is that such a horrible thing, Susannah?"

"What?" I couldn't believe my ears. Father Dom did not just say that.

"Jesse has now, presumably, led a full life now. He was not murdered at such a young age, and he did not have to haunt your house for a century and a half alone," Father D continued saying, but wouldn't quite meet my eye. I think he was trying to avoid my glare.

"But…But how do we know that?!" I couldn't believe that we were even having this discussion. Father Dom didn't have to see Jesse curled up on the floor in pain last night like I did. It sure as hell didn't look like he was going to be all right. I told him so, "He was in agony!"

Father Dom stood up and paced behind his desk, looking thoughtful. He explained, "Well, souls are timeless, Susannah. If Paul really did change the past, Jesse's soul was probably pulled back to relive his life as it should."

I didn't buy a word of it. About Jesse being okay, I mean. It suddenly hit me. "_Life in Northern California_," I perked up, remembering how I found out about his past in the first place, "The book that talked about Jesse's history with Maria! Do you have a copy?" There was only one way to be sure Jesse's was all right. Or at least, _had _been all right. You get the idea.

"No, but…" Father D hesitated, "I think I might have seen that title in Jesse's room. Come with me." I followed him out of the office and towards the rectory.

This was the first time I had been inside the place. It was a lot bigger than it seemed from outside, but still in the same style as the school. That is, the minimal electrical devices and thick walls. Lucky for us, the other residents of the rectory were out somewhere else during the day. Now I kinda see why Brad made that comment earlier. Even in a laid back place like Carmel, principal-priests don't usually take their students – even the vice-president of the student council – up to the living quarters of the rectory. It just doesn't seem right.

We came to the top floor and at the very end of the hall was a very plain, wooden door. Father Dom started searching through his pockets, but instead of his usual cigarettes he came up with an old fashioned silver key which he proceeded to use on the lock on the door. That was actually a pretty good idea since it probably kept any snooping residents out and wouldn't have mattered to Jesse, being able to dematerialize and all that.

Father Dom seemed to be having some trouble with the door though. He had unlocked it, but it wouldn't budge. "That's odd…" And with more strength than I would've given him credit, Father Dom rammed his shoulder against the door, which gave way and had him tumbling inside.

I rushed to help him up, but we both stopped when we got a good look around the room. My eloquent reaction was "What the-"

The room itself was ordinary: a simple bed and nightstand, quite a few bookshelves, a single window, and a woven rug on the floor. It was a bit rustic, but strangely warm. Like Jesse. No, that wasn't what caught our attention. It was that everything there was coated in a fine layer of dust and cobweb, as if the room hadn't been used in years.

"Goodness…" said Father D as he straightened up, brushing the dust off his clothes. "I see that this has affected more than people's memories."

Father Dom walked over to the bookcase and scanned the titles while I looked around the room. I lightly skid the toe of my shoe across the rug, making a neat clean line in the ashen dust. I just couldn't get my mind off Jesse. Whatever happened to him after last night meant that he kept on living a century and a half ago. Did he remember me? Did he try to come back? Did he beat the crap out of Diego for trying to kill him?

I sat down in a huff on Jesse's bed, momentarily forgetting the dust as it came up in a swirl and got on every inch of my clothes. Brushing it off nonchalantly, my mind wandered elsewhere. Namely to what I was going to do about all this. Paul, of course, wasn't going to give me any information about what he did to go back in time. Father D wasn't a shifter so I couldn't ask him.

Ugh, I was missing something! Besides Jesse, that is. There had to be some way for me to follow how Paul did this. Before I could try to come up with what that something was, Father D exclaimed, "Ah, here it is!" I stood up and cleaned off my skirt, looking at him expectantly.

He had an old leather book in hand and was flipping carefully through the pages. He finally stopped at one that I could see had that portrait of Maria on one side. He read aloud the caption, "Maria de Silva 1830-1916." Father D skimmed the following pages and his brow furrowed in a mixture of shock and confusion. Without looking up from the book, he said to me, "It seems that Maria still marries Felix Diego in the end."

"What?" I suppose it shouldn't have been too big of a surprise. Jesse did say before that he wasn't going to go through with the marriage, even if it meant bringing some shame to his family. It was probably the first thing he did when he got back. Nobody needs a psycho bride like Maria. Except maybe Diego, of course.

Father D continued, "It says here that Jesse cancelled the arrangement after an attempt on his life was revealed. While Felix was suspected by the De Silvas, nothing could be charged against him. Maria went on just as she did before this… change."

"And Jesse?" I couldn't keep the hopeful squeak out of my voice.

Father Dom paused to glance up at me, but it was a neutral one. He finally said, "He never married, it seems. Jesse..." Father Dom cut off as his eyes widened and traveled down the rest of page, "Oh, dear."

I took a step towards him, "What?" Had something happened to Jesse, even with Paul's meddling?

Father D sighed and turned to me, "Jesse disappeared shortly after his attempted murder. No one knows what happened to him." He closed the book and replaced it on the shelf.

I sputtered, "But… That's almost exactly what happened last time!"

Father D nodded and supplied, "Except now, Jesse is not a spirit." This did not make any sense. How could that even be possible? If something really drastic had happened, as in Jesse dying all over again, wouldn't he have popped up here again? What was so different about the past that Jesse had not stayed as a ghost?

Well, that was it for me. I turned on my heel and opened the door, muttering, "I'm getting to the bottom of this."

"Susannah, wait!" But it wasn't Father Dom who had said it.

In front of me was a girl my age, pretty with curled black hair and hazel eyes. She was wearing a hoop dress, much like Maria had worn last time I saw her. Oh yeah, did I mention she was _dead_? The girl was staring at me expectantly. She did look oddly familiar, but I just blurted the first thing that came to mind, "Who the hell are you?"

"Susannah…" She scoffed, "This is no time for games." When she saw that I wasn't kidding, the girl looked startled and raised her eyebrows in a way that again looked oh-too-familiar. "It's me, the girl who's been haunting your room for the past hundred and some years. Carmen. Carmen de Silva."

Behind me, Father D said softly, "Oh, dear…"

"Susannah, Father Dominic…?" Carmen looked almost frightened at how confused the two of us were. Looking back on it, I probably would have been too. The space-time continuum had been royally screwed thanks to Paul and his travels.

I massaged my temple in a vain attempt to make the pain go away at this new development. Obviously, this girl was related to my missing love interest, but somehow came to haunt where he should have been. I muttered, "First Jesse, now this."

"My brother?" Carmen perked up immediately, "You have some news about Jesse?"

"Your brother?"

"Yes, don't you remember?" she insisted, sounding a bit desperate. "His real name is Hector, after our grandfather."

Okay, I want to say that I handled the situation well, I really do. But I didn't. Hey, I was upset, all right? Jesse was gone, his little sister popped up outta nowhere, and I suddenly got the greatest idea _ever_. But instead of telling Father D and Carmen about this, I headed straight for the stairwell and said, "That's it! I am fixing this right now!" I left the two of them pretty speechless outside of Jesse's room.

While normally I would be keen to get some info out of Jesse's little sister, Carmen triggered a realization that I was so stupid to have missed. I mean, it was _right there_! The only problem would be getting there. But what's family for, right?

Brad was sitting at his usual table, looking slightly happier than he had been that morning. Shame I had to bring it all down again. I tapped him on the shoulder, "Brad, we need to talk."

He turned around rather impatiently and asked, "About what?"

I answered shortly, "Jesse." As a look of surprise came over him, I muttered, "C'mon," and pulled him up off his seat and dragged him to a spot where we wouldn't be overheard. I didn't want to go back to the cemetery in case Paul was still there, so I took a chance with an empty hallway, keeping an eye out for novices. Brad looked uncomfortable at this uprooting, but was keeping a surly silence. Checking to make sure no one was around, I explained to him, "Look, I need you to take me somewhere."

"Now?!" He quickly lowered his voice and said through gritted teeth, "Suze, we're at school!" Oh, yeah. As if school was suddenly important to Brad. His eyes darted down the hall, but were most likely to be looking for an excuse not to take me.

I kept my temper in check since Brad needed to be conscious to drive. "This is more important than school, Brad," I added in almost a growl, "And if you don't take me, I'll find every ghost in the state and have them stalk you."

That got him. "Fine! Jesus!" His heavy shoulders slumped in defeat and he asked grudgingly, "Where do you need to go?"

"Paul Slater's house," I replied in barely a whisper, in case he was anywhere close by.

"What for?! He's here at the school."

I explained hurriedly, "Because it's not him I want to talk to. It's his grandfather, Dr. Slaski." Why hadn't I seen it sooner? Dr. Slaski was perfect. He knew everything about being a shifter and he obviously didn't think much of his grandson if he warned me about him. But we had to go now. There was no way I could talk to the old guy if Paul was actually there.

Brad looked at me funny and asked, "Who?"

"Jeez, I'll explain later." I glanced around and caught sight of Brad's watch. Crap, five minutes till lunch was over. "Go to the car and I'll meet you there. I have to take care of something first."

Still looking peeved, Brad resentfully nodded. We turned in opposite directions, him towards the exit and me back to the courtyard. I quickly found CeeCee and Adam again who were having the weirdest conversation.

"Here she is," said Adam, "Suze, settle a bet for us. Is it really better to have loved and lost than to have never have loved at all?"

The confused shock I felt must have registered on my face because CeeCee added, "The quote by Alfred Lord Tennyson is going to be an essay in our Lit class, remember?"

The question did take me aback a bit even though I knew that I hadn't told them yet. About what had happened to Jesse, I mean. Instead of answering the question though, I asked, "CeeCee, we're still on for tonight, right?"

She perked up, "Of course we are. You're going to tell us all about…" she trailed off, a rather puzzled look on her face. "That guy…" Her face screwed up in concentration as she tried to remember. I should've known CeeCee's curiosity wouldn't go down without a fight, even against the changes in the time stream.

"Jesse," I quickly supplied. This idea of mine required major help and CeeCee had to be completely aware for it.

"Yes! That's it. Jesse." She raised her eyebrows suspiciously, "Speaking of which, where were you? Paul Slater came by looking for you."

"I don't have time to tell you right now," she gave me that look again, "but I will tonight, all right? Right now I need a favor from you and Adam."

Adam quit munching on his chips and asked, "What do you need, Suze?"

I leaned in and spoke lowly, "If anyone asks, especially Paul, I got sick and went home with Brad. Father Dominic will vouch for me." Before they could argue about either me leaving or Father D, I continued, "I'll still meet you at your house around four or five, but if I don't come back by the time school's out, take David home. Trust me on this."

CeeCee looked at me shrewdly, just aching to ask more, but finally just said, "All right, Simon."

Adam sighed dramatically but also agreed. As I left though, he added, "This better be one hell of a secret though. Sounds like a spy novel." Oh, if he only knew.

A few minutes later, just before the other students of Mission Academy were herded back into class, Brad and I were in the car and driving off campus. Along the way and in between my directions to the Slater house, I told Brad about the situation at hand. The entire explanation: including Paul, Dr. Slaski's work, and what had happened in the past couple of days. I expected him to freak out a bit more, but it seemed to finally soak in. He was surprisingly attentive about the whole thing.

Brad repeated flatly, "So you're telling me that this old guy is going to help you change history because Paul Slater changed it last night, but no one knows it but you and the principal?"

"Basically," I replied.

He snorted, "You're nuts, Suze." Shrugging, he glanced at me and asked, "Even if this is all true, what's the big deal? So some cowboy ghost is gone, so what?"

"It's important to me, Brad. And," I thought about how to put this, "something tells me I have to. If not for Jesse, then for his sister." She had looked so hopeful when I mentioned Jesse's name back at the rectory. In a way, I was responsible for Carmen being stuck here even if I didn't know the circumstances. I know Jesse was able to handle being alone for 150 years, but I didn't know a thing about his sister, despite the time change.

Brad, however, seemed to know her. "The one in your room? Carmen?" He paused for a moment before asking, "Is she hot?"

"Ugh! Brad!"

"What?! Like you're any different, lusting for her brother." I just looked out the window sourly. As vulgar as he was, Brad had a point. Not that I'd admit it to him though.

A/N: Sorry if the chapter feels rushed, my mind's a big jumble from all the fan-news I'm gathering at once. If you see some sort of plothole or mistake, tell me. Next chapter features Dr. Slaski's warnings, a final explanation to Adam and CeeCee, and a little trip to the past.


	6. Listen to your Elders

A/N: So completely lazy right now. And, of course, my lazy is inversely related to the productivity of this fic. Also, the character Carmen from this fic and the one from Chocolate Eclar's is a coincidence. We've already privately discussed it.

Chapter 6:

So here it was. We finally arrived at the Slater residence. It seemed somewhat less ominous since I wasn't riding with Paul this time. The glass house on the cliff was still as empty-looking as ever, but noting the old Toyota in the garage, at least I knew who was in there. I was already doing some quick thinking as Brad and I walked up to the front door. Ringing the doorbell, I muttered to Brad, "Just follow my lead."

We heard the bell ring throughout the house. Glass isn't exactly a great sound muffler. Kinda made me wonder if Dr. Slaski didn't mind the privacy invasion that came with the great view. Then again, Dr. Slaski wasn't all there sometimes, if you know what I mean. Or at least, he pretended not to be. I still had to get some answers about that.

As I was wondering about this, the same youngish male nurse I met last time answered the door. He looked at us, rather surprised, and asked, "Yes?" Peering at me, he added with a smile, "Susan, right?"

"Hi, um…" It didn't occur to me to correct him since I didn't know the guy's name either. I plowed on, "We're here to see Mr. Slater."

The nurse asked with a small smirk, "Shouldn't you be at school?" The way this guy was smiling all the time was making me nervous. Like those artificial grins on mannequins or housewives from the 50's. Way freaky.

I plastered on my sweet schoolgirl routine. "The class is doing an article on Mr. Slater for the school newspaper. As a surprise for his grandson." I threw in the last bit as an afterthought. It wasn't my most convincing line, but I had to make sure the nurse wouldn't tell Paul about our little lunchtime visit. Last thing I needed was to have him barreling into 1850 after me.

The nurse seemed to buy it though. He winked and said, "I see. Right this way."

Brad and I stepped inside as the nurse held the door open for us. He led us down the familiar hallway of glass and steel as Brad was looking around, obviously impressed. All I could think was how sterile everything was. Clean and cold like a doctor's office. Both made me uneasy in the same way.

The nurse looked over his shoulder and said, "This is very kind of you two, but Mr. Slater may not be very responsive today." I guess that was how he put 'nearly comatose' lightly. "We'll just have to see how it goes," he added optimistically.

We finally came to the room Dr. Slaski was in, the one with the widescreen TV, hospital bed, and great view. Kinda like a high-class rest home, and given the occupant, made perfect sense. Dr. Slaski himself was in the same place he was last time I was here, planted in front of the TV and slightly drooling. The nurse said kindly, "Mr. S? These nice people have come to visit you."

For a moment, it looked like the old guy hadn't even acknowledged our presence. But then Dr. Slaski lifted his head slightly and lost that glazed look. He said clearly to the nurse, "Lunch. I'm hungry."

The nurse blinked at Dr. Slaski in surprise and said, "Oh, I thought you said you didn't want lunch. Alright, I'll go prepare your meal." He turned to us before leaving and asked, "You guys going to be all right while I'm gone?"

I nodded. "Yeah, just fine."

As soon as the nurse shut the door behind him, Dr. Slaski looked up at me and asked, "What's the trouble, Susan?" I noticed that Paul must've gotten his blue eyes from his grandfather. They were the same color, but somehow entirely different. Calmer. More like Father Dom's.

"How did you know?" I added, "And it's just Suze." If I was going to work with the guy, we might as well know each other's names.

"Why else would you be here?" Dr. Slaski said roughly, "He's done something to that ghost boy of yours, hasn't he?" I didn't bother to wonder how he knew about Jesse. Dr. Slaski obviously had some major insight on Paul if he already knew his grandson was screwing around in shadowland before. A big deal like Jesse wouldn't go unnoticed.

"Paul's changed the past. He –" I didn't want to go on. How do explain something like that without sounding like an idiot? Paul had technically saved Jesse. 'Fixing' this would mean murder. No, I was doing the right thing. I would just… go see how things were working out and come back. That's it. Really.

I probably would have convinced myself of that if it wasn't the same exact excuse I used when I exorcised myself. Look how that turned out. It wasn't my fault though, Jesse wanted to come back. I had nothing to do with his decision.

Or did I?

My little revelation was interrupted just then when Dr. Slaski had apparently read my mind about what Paul had done. He considered me warily and said, "I see. You want to right his wrongs, do you?" Sighing heavily, he slumped back in his wheelchair and stared at his lap thoughtfully, as if weighing the options. Dr. Slaski was probably thinking about how insane this plan was. I know that's what I was thinking. But it was the only one I had and it just might be crazy enough to work. I just needed his help.

He finally lifted his head and muttered resignedly, "Well, someone's got to put that boy in his place, and I'm not in any shape to do it." He looked at me with a kinda glare. Not a suspicious one. Just the kind that screams 'you're not much, but you'll have to do.' Yeah, thanks. That really builds up my hope there, Dr. S. The old guy continued, "I'll tell you how, but you have to follow my directions exactly. Don't want you to end up somewhere without a way back."

Dr. S used the little control stick on his wheelchair to drive himself over to a shelf on the opposite wall, rummaging around for something. He was muttering under his breath again as Brad and I glanced at each other uncertainly.

When he didn't find what he was looking for, Dr. S moved on to the next shelf but raised his voice to say, "First, you'll need an item from that time. Once you have that, that'll be a sort of compass when your spirit is traveling." He picked up a black and white framed photograph, glanced at the back, and then set it back down to continue his search.

"Whoa, wait!" Did I just hear him right? I asked him, "I have to be a ghost when I do this?" Great, more pounding headaches. If there was one helpful thing I learned about being a shifter, it was to carry around Advil all the time. Those head trips are _not_ fun.

Dr. S explained without turning around, "You have to be a spirit because the human body isn't meant to crossover, but you'll be solid when you get there. Don't worry." He was still checking those old pictures. Checking the backs of them, anyways. I was tempted to just ask him what he was looking for, but Dr. S looked pretty intent on finding it himself. "Second, concentrate hard on that item and exactly when you need to be. Just like how you shift from here to Shadowland. You'll find your way."

Finally, Dr. S found the picture he was looking for. He fumbled with the clasps on the frame and removed the photo. Hidden behind it was a folded slip of paper that looked almost as wrinkled as he was. The page was yellowing and kinda feathery on the edges, like he had kept it back there for ages.

He replaced the frame and photo and drove back over to us, saying, "Third, you absolutely have to get back before Sunday at midnight, when the star stops blazing. To do that, find a natural bed of water."

Eyeing the paper, I asked, "Why the water?" I didn't like the idea of having to take a dive coming back. I'm pretty sure they didn't have bathing suits back then.

Dr. S unfolded the piece of paper, showing us what at first looked like a big, blobby scribble. But upon closer inspection, it was a rubbing. You know, one of those things you did in grade school where you rub a crayon over a texture and get a copy of it? Well, this was done in graphite and had an imprint of something that definitely wasn't English. It looked more like a bunch of little pictures to me. But apparently Dr. S had no problem reading it.

He traced the pictures with his fingers and said, "Memorize this: '_Water ends what fire began and all returns to life._' It was written on a clay tablet I acquired in Egypt. Something else I picked up in my years. When you're on the water, recite that with your object in hand and you'll find your way back just as you came."

He heaved a sigh and folded the paper back up carefully. With it still in hand, he pointed at me and said meaningfully, "You _have_ to be careful. Time travel is tricky business."

As he went to hide the rubbing – probably for another decade or so – I asked, "Can I take anything with me, besides the compass-thing?"

"Yes, things can be taken through, but only what you can carry." He suddenly whirled around and warned fervently, "But don't take anything from the past! There's no telling what can happen then!"

I was a little surprised by his little freak out. The guy may have been a genius, but he obviously had a few screws loose somewhere. "Ok, jeez."

"How do you know all this? You do it before?" Brad asked unexpectedly. We both stared at him in surprise. I almost forgot he was there.

Dr. S, however, laughed with a tone that was ringed with something I couldn't quite explain. Regret? Sitting back in his chair, he murmured quietly, "Yeah, there was a supernova way back before you were even born. Things have never been the same. I cheated death and it's hounded me ever since." Now we weren't sure if he was talking to us or just to himself. I was actually starting to get worried about him when he said, "Promise me that after this, you won't shift anymore. Please."

Before I could say anything, the nurse came back with a metal tray carrying a simple sandwich, pudding, a cup of ice water, with a side of pills. Yum. "Here's your lunch, Mr. Slater." He turned to Brad and me and said, "You two ought to leave now. Mr. Slater needs his quiet and rest."

"Yeah, we were just leaving. Bye, Mr. Slater." I turned to leave, but realized that Dr. Slaski was still staring at me. I hesitated, but nodded firmly so he could see. He bobbed his head in return and once again he got that glazed-over look to his eyes.

I felt weird on the drive back. We probably couldn't get back to school on time, so Brad just headed straight for CeeCee's to drop me off. An eerie quiet had settled over us, neither talking. My mind wandered since Brad didn't bother to turn on the radio as a distraction. I thought vaguely about how serious Dr. S had been about shifting. Everything from his wheelchair to his once bright eyes told me something. It was dangerous. And now his grandson was messing with things that even shifters shouldn't touch.

Mediating was never easy, obviously. But at least back in New York, it was basic. I found a ghost, solved the problem, and left. That was it. Everything was different now. I wasn't alone anymore. Father Dom looked after me. Paul proved that I _didn't_ know everything. And then, of course, I fell in love with a ghost. It just wasn't simple anymore. And it never would be again, even after this.

"You're quiet," Brad spoke up suddenly. I shrugged in response. Well, no duh. I had a lot on my mind. The full weight of what I was going to do was settling in. I was going into the past. I was going to see Jesse again. Alive.

And he probably wouldn't have a clue who I was.

He glanced over at me again, "You're really planning to do it, aren't you?"

"Yeah." Although I tried to sound cool about it, that phrase was more of a final call. I really was going to 1850. Since I still didn't know what I was going to do once I got there, talking to CeeCee and Adam sounded like a walk in the park now.

Brad let out a heavy sigh and asked, "What do I need to do?" When I just gave him the blank stare, he said, "Like, what do you want me to tell Mom and Dad?" Wow, Brad was actually trying to be helpful. I could understand if he just plugged up his ears and sang to himself that he wasn't listening, but this was pretty decent of him.

I thought about it for a moment, making sure I had everything covered in my plan. "If anyone asks, tell them I'll be at CeeCee' till Monday. She'll back me up."

"She's not going to mind a lifeless body around the house all weekend?" He screwed up his face as he added, "Imagine the smell."

I rolled my eyes before answering, "CeeCee's parents took her little sisters to go see their grandmother." I decided to leave out the fact that I hadn't exactly told CeeCee about this yet. I'd cross that bridge when I got there.

We came upon CeeCee's place, a tidy little place where nothing seemed out of the ordinary. I'd have to apologize later for ruining that. Stepping out of the car, I noticed that Brad was staring at me again. I closed the door and asked almost impatiently, "What?"

He frowned to himself and just said, "Just be careful, 'kay?" Before I could even reply, he drove off.

I walked up the driveway and saw two cars parked there. I recognized the VW as Adam's, but couldn't quite place the other one. Looked awfully familiar though. But I marched right up to the door before I could lose my nerve. Taking a deep breath, I rang to doorbell. After a moment, a violet eye peeked out from the side curtains and the door opened. CeeCee stood there and gave a noticeable sigh of relief, "Good, I was hoping you wouldn't chicken out." I must've looked funny since she added, "What's wrong?"

I replied automatically, "Nothing." She raised a pale eyebrow and I amended, "All right, something. But I'll get to that. Where's Adam?"

CeeCee made a sort of grimace. "Um, he's entertaining another guest." She stepped aside to let me in. The inside was as orderly as the outside, save for the area in front of the TV which was littered with crayons and magazines. Obviously remnants of where the little Webbs spent their time. When I gave her a questioning look about this other guest, she said, "Just come upstairs, Suze, I'm already weirded out by this."

"What is it?" We headed up the peach fuzz colored stairs as I mentally ran through the possible people who might know I was here. My eyes widened as I grabbed CeeCee's shoulder, asking, "Is it Paul?! You didn't let him in, did you?" If he was here, it would ruin _everything_!

But CeeCee shook her head, "No, but it's a good thing Mom and Dad took my sisters to my grandmother's for the weekend. Otherwise, we both would have a lot of explaining to do."

I blinked. "What do you mean?"

CeeCee opened the door to the room at the end of the hallway. Inside was a surprising girlish bedroom, but accented with posters from various old movies. I recognized a few of them with Humphrey Bogart and Audrey Hepburn. Sitting on the duvet covers was Adam, chatting casually before looking up to say, "Hey, Suze." But what immediately caught my attention was who he was talking to.

I sputtered, "Father Dom?!"

Father D gave me an exasperated look before answering, "Of course, Susannah. You didn't think I'd just sit idly by while you did this, do you?"

"How did you find out?" I asked, frowning.

"Well, if Mr. Slater could achieve it, I'd imagine you would naturally try it yourself." He looked around uneasily at CeeCee and Adam, who were watching our exchange like a tennis match. "I came here when Ms. Webb here tried to confirm your excuse for when you and Bradley left campus. You should have-"

But I cut him off right there and said, "Look, Father D, I know you're going to say I can't do this and all, but I have to! Jesse's life is a stake here. Not only him but Carmen deserves to know what happened and –"

It was his turn to interrupt, "If you'd calm down, Susannah, you'd know that I have no intention of stopping you." He sighed and explained, "I was going to say you should have told us what you were up to first so we could've helped. You were planning on using Ms. Webb's room, weren't you? You could've thought this through a little better, Susannah."

CeeCee perked up and asked, "My room for what?"

Hesitating, I replied, "I was going to ask if I could stay here for the weekend." Sure, I was skirting around the real answer, but it was true in essence, right?

Adam raised an eyebrow. "I don't see what the big deal is. All this because Suze wants to spend the night? What is she, a vampire?"

"I am _not_ a vampire." As if I needed another freak label on me. Turning back to Father D, I asked, "Then what do you want me to do then? Do it right in my own house?"

"Whoa, do what now?" asked Adam, but we ignored him.

Father Dom continued patiently, "You could perform whatever you need in the rectory. Jesse's room is still vacant."

I stared at him for a good moment. Why didn't I think of that?! Stupid, stupid me! I was so busy getting everything else done that I overlooked a perfectly good hideout for the weekend. I could've kicked myself. Father D must've seen the revelation on my face since he just patted my shoulder kindly and said, "Let's go, Susannah. Carmen is waiting for us there."

"Hold it right there, Simon!"

CeeCee was standing in front of the door, arms crossed, a determined glare set on me. "You owe me an explanation, Suze. No buts. What is going on here? First, your boyfriend is a ghost, and then you and the principal are being all hush-hush like some government conspiracy. And who the world is Carmen?"

Father D and Adam were caught completely off guard by this. Father D because he wasn't aware CeeCee knew and Adam because, well…

"What do you mean your boyfriend's a ghost?!"

I looked at Father Dom apologetically and said, "I did promise I'd tell them."

Sitting down heavily on CeeCee's bed, I began to explain everything. But if I'd known the consequences, I'd never have brought them into it.

A/N: Yeah, I'm cutting it off here. It's a bit rushed, but that's because I got bored with the talking. Too much talking. I'll get around to updating… later. If you'd like some sort of warning for if/when I'm going to update, you can read my Xanga site. It's listed as my homepage on my profile. If I'm working on something, it'll be noted there. Note to under-aged readers: Since my xanga site is my personal college blog, most likely there will be R rated material at some point. When, I dunno, but I'd thought I'd give you guys a heads up first.

Happy reading, people.


	7. Wonderful Journey

A/N: Does anyone still read this?

* * *

Chapter 7: 

I had left CeeCee and Adam a little jaw-dropped by the end of the explanation. Adam more so because he honestly didn't have a clue. He joked around at first that Carmen must be a ghost of someone who died of boredom in Carmel. Unfortunately for him, Carmen had appeared at the mention of her name and overheard. Not terribly amused, she aimed a few of CeeCee's markers at his head to make her point and disappeared again. Adam clammed up immediately.

CeeCee on the other hand took it all in stride and even went back over it to make sure she had all the facts right. She mentally filed away everything about Jesse, Carmen, the De Silvas, and Slaters. But when I got to the part about what I was planning that night, we caught a snag.

She shot up from her seat, "You're doing what?!"

"I'm going into the past," I repeated.

"Are you nuts, Suze?! You could affect anything! Didn't you watch Quantum Leap?"

"Uh, no." I didn't know what she was talking about but vaguely recalled the name from one of those old shows Mom used to watch. "Paul already did it once, so…" I trailed off lamely. Trying to make her not worry so much, I added, "Father Dom will be here though."

CeeCee opened her mouth again, but Father Dom interrupted calmly in that nice deep voice of his, "I assure you Susannah will be fine, Miss Webb. As a fellow mediator, I noticed she has a certain, er, talent for getting herself out of trouble as well as into it. If it makes you feel better, you can contact me at anytime to check on her. As she mentioned, I will be at her side the entire time."

And with that, we left.

It really made me feel better to know Father Dom was going to watch over me. Or at least what was left of me after I went into the past. But I also felt bad about what happened. I hadn't meant to make Father D admit his whole role in the mediator shtick. The guy deserves some privacy at least. Although when I asked him about it, he just waved it off and said that he was far too old to be concerned with gossip at his age. He did fix me with that look though and said, "I do wish you would consider what we talked about before."

I blinked curiously at him. "What?"

"Your mother, Susannah," he sighed. "At this rate, the whole town will know besides your own family." I hope he didn't notice my guilt. I couldn't even remember if I had told him about David knowing about this. That left one step-brother and the parental units. And now in addition to Gina, CeeCee and Adam knew. I'm not very good at this secret thing after all.

Father Dom spoke up again, "I wanted to inform you about Miss De Silva. We had a little talk when you ran off earlier today."

"And?"

"It appears that as Paul changed the past, Carmen came to fill Jesse's role in the present. Everything we've done up to now seems to have been altered to fit that fact. Even Miss Webb's article has changed."

My eyes widened. "Changed? To what?" He pointed to an old newspaper on the floor of the car. I picked it up gingerly since it was kinda already torn in a few places. Reading through, it noted Clive Clemming's death and last works on Hector – er, Jesse's mysterious vanishing. Only this time, there was no mention of finding his body. The article only talked about Jesse's cancellation of the wedding and the speculation of his disappearance. Diego's part in Jesse's murder was completely missing.

Father Dom said, "Carmen says that we've been trying to find out what happened to Jesse the entire time we've known her. You both had such a strong feeling that Maria and Diego did have a part in Jesse's disappearance that their ghosts were raised out of spite for Carmen and Mr. Clemming. That article is the result."

"Are you saying they don't now?" I asked, stunned. I mean, c'mon, Maria and Diego _did_ kill Jesse. Or at least, they had before this whole thing. If they weren't behind Jesse's eventual disappearance, who was? Besides Paul, that is.

"I simply don't know, Susannah," he sighed. "Everything seems to hinge on what you find tonight."

When we got to the rectory, Father Dom and I snuck up to Jesse's room. Well, I did anyway. Father Dom was more of a look out. Luckily, most everyone was already tucked away for the night. Maybe religious people need more time to pray before they sleep or something. As we made our way up the final stairwell, I realized that Father Dom was a little _too_ good at this. He made sure to check down each hall and around every corner for any unseen wanderers. We might've been caught at one point if he hadn't backed up suddenly to keep me from running straight into one of the novices. Sure, I bumped my head a little on his shoulder blade, but that was a hell of a lot better than trying to explain what I was doing there. Father Dom politely greeted the novice and blocked me from view until she had turned the corner.

As he unlocked Jesse's door once more, I asked casually, "That was pretty sneaky, Father D. You do this before?"

He slipped slightly in turning the key, but regained himself. "I was young too once, Susannah." The response sounded stern, but I swear there was a twinkle in his eye as I passed him going into the room.

Inside, Carmen had laid out several things on Jesse's bed: a flashlight, some pre-packaged snack foods, and a few changes of clothes. She was pacing back and forth nervously as I approached to make sure everything was in order. As I emptied my backpack of books and started packing up the items, Carmen pulled them away and said softly, "Here, let me do it." I was going to ask her what was wrong, but didn't. It seemed like she had a lot on her mind, and I couldn't blame her. The sun was setting just outside, casting an orange glow over the room. It made me wonder how time could be so immense, yet there not be enough of it left.

Father D jostled me back to attention by asking, "Do you have everything you need, Susannah?" He looked sad somehow and older, as if the lines in his face were suddenly deepened by the situation.

I nodded, "Yeah. Yeah, I have everything." To show him, I pulled a small round object out of my pocket. It was the miniature that Jack had left me last summer. I always had it safely tucked away on me ever since I decided to keep it. Edged in gold with a small broken hinge, it looked as if it could've been used as a locket once. Jesse in his cravat still stared back from the frame, unblinking. But something had changed. There was something _different_ about it.

I held it up close till I realized what it was. Jesse was _smiling_. Not that that's a bad thing, but he definitely wasn't how the miniature looked before. The bored, indifferent look was gone and replaced with an almost mischievous smirk. Father D asked, "Something wrong?"

"I… Uh, no. Nothing's wrong." I couldn't tell him. For some reason, there was a churn in my insides as I looked at the miniature again. He looked so happy. Jesse was happy.

Carmen called to me. My stuff was packed and ready to go. I bit my lower lip and hesitated. I mean, if there was any evidence of Jesse's good health, that miniature was it, right? I didn't want to ruin for him just for my own insecurities. But looking at Carmen's anxious face, I told myself that it wasn't just for me. It was for his sister too. We both loved him enough to take this chance.

I took the pack from her, tucking it under my arm. As I lay down on the bed, Father D murmured, "Godspeed, Susannah. And good luck."

"Thanks. See you Monday," I tried to sound optimistic. Closing my eyes, I gripped the miniature gently and thought of Jesse. I heard Carmen whisper, "Maybe…" before everything went black.

It was a hazy blue when I could focus again. A wind blew across my face as I tried to see where and how I was moving. There was a tug from the miniature in my hands as it seemed to be leading me somewhere. There was a creak as passed through a waft of warm air and my body came to a sudden stop.

"Oh, shi-"

The stop was a little too abrupt. Pitching forward, I put out my hands to stop my face from slamming into the muddy ground.

Great, just great. I picked myself up, wiping the muck off of my bare knees. It was then that I noticed that I was actually a little transparent and slowly solidifying. Let me tell you, seeing through your hand to the dirt sticking to it isn't exactly encouraging.

And then there was the rain.

So to wrap it up, I was standing at the edge of some creek, soaking wet, with my pack at my side, and still clutching Jesse's picture to my chest. Now what?

A feeling of dread built up in my stomach. I had no clue what to do now. Was I even close to where Jesse was? Was I still in Carmel? Was this even the right time period? I tried to calm myself down and make sense of things. First things first. I had to get out of the rain.

Scoping out the area, there wasn't much around. It was already past sunset and all I could make out was a barn or storage house of some sort in the distance. Better than nothing, I suppose. I picked up my things and ran towards it.

The door was heavy, but already slightly ajar thankfully. I had to throw my weight against it to open it enough to sidle in. It was eerily quiet inside. And smelly, actually. I hoped that this hay stench wouldn't stick to my clothes.

But I couldn't be bothered with that now. I suddenly realized how dead tired I was. There was a swelling headache emerging from the back of my skull. Not pleasant. I sat down on the surprisingly warm and dry hay pile to rummage around for maybe some Tylenol when I heard a sniffle. And it wasn't me.

I looked around quickly, but didn't see anyone. Hesitating, I continued my search for pain relief. Mystery lurker or not, this headache wouldn't wait. I downed a couple of tablets with a bottle of water from the pack. There was another sniffle, and this time a cough too.

Finally getting up the nerve, I asked, "Hey, is somebody in here?"

Another cough. It sounded like phlegm was involved. Lovely.

Being the kind-hearted person I am, I spoke up again, "You know, that sounds kinda bad. I have some medicine." If I was lucky, this person would owe me a favor and I could figure out what to do from here. Better to befriend at least one person from here than wander around aimlessly.

There was a small shuffle from the pile behind me. I turned around quickly to see a little girl with large hazel eyes.

* * *

As Suze's body went limp and the brief swirl of light disappeared with her spirit and belongings, Carmen turned to Father Dominic, worried, "Do you think it is all right we didn't tell her, Father?" 

The old priest shook his head. "We have to let time take its course, Carmen. Even if we had, I'm sure Susannah would have gone anyway." He added softly, "Dead or alive, people do strange things when love is involved."

Understanding, Carmen patted the older man's shoulder comfortingly. She sighed, "I hope I'm right about this."

* * *

A/N: Short, but I thought I'd give this to you anyway. Finals next week, but only two so I might get another one out by the end of the year. Storywise, yes, I'll be switching back and forth between past and present. I'll make it flow well though so it's not like you got suddenly sideswiped by a different plot. 

By the way, chapter title is from a song sung by Donna Lewis and Richard Marx. I believe it's from the movie soundtrack of Anastasia. Pretty fitting.

So, see ya when I see ya then.


	8. It's Gonna Rain

Author's Note: I like books. Chapter title from song of same name by Bonnie Pink.

* * *

Chapter 8: 

"You're going to run a hole into your rug."

CeeCee paced back and forth in her room, trying to logically put together everything Suze had told her. It made sense, in a weird sort of way. Suze had always been a little odd, but not in a bad way. Just a little stand-offish. The only times she had noticed Suze acting strange was when that body – Jesse's body, she reminded herself – was discovered in the Ackermans' backyard, and second when Paul came to Carmel. That was when things got really weird.

Suze had always been the tough one. She wasn't afraid of Kelly Prescott, Sister Ernestine, or even – as she had just found out – ghosts. According to her, Suze had been doing this for most of her life. But with every scrape and every dilemma she went through, she never burdened it onto her friends.

But Suze seemed honestly scared of Paul. And now CeeCee knew the reason.

"UGH!" CeeCee's sudden outburst almost made Adam fall off the bed, where he had just been watching her walk past him for the millionth time. "I knew there was _something_ going on, but I didn't think it would be this big." She sighed and sat down next to Adam who was picking himself up.

"So what do we do now?" he asked.

CeeCee looked at her feet and grimaced, "There's nothing we really can do. Suze is probably already gone by now, and it's not like we can follow her."

"That's true." Adam stood up and picked up a marker that had been thrown at him previously. He studied it before commenting, "You'd think that a girl that lived in the past would know what happens. I mean, if Suze is meeting up with this Jesse guy, isn't Carmen going to be there too?"

CeeCee opened her mouth to retort, but stopped. He was right. Something didn't quite add up with Carmen's story. If she was telling the truth, Carmen was with Jesse right up until the day he disappeared because of the wedding.

"There's something fishy about this, Adam." No sooner had she said that, a cold wind blasted into the room, rattling the furniture and scattering papers all over the place. Something else had joined them.

* * *

I gasped as the chill swept into the warm hay storage. The gap I made through the doorway was letting in way too much of the storm. "Crap, give me a hand with this first." Putting their backs against the door, we strained and pushed it shut. I heaved a sigh of relief and looked down at the girl, who was wet and shivering. She couldn't have been more than six. I climbed back onto the hay stack where my pack was and pulled out a couple of towels. "Here, dry off first. You'll catch a cold." 

She wordless took the towel and wrapped it around herself. Her suspiciously familiar black curly hair was stuck flat to her head. Without explanation, I sat her down in front of me and pulled out a brush as well. Systematically, I dried her hair and brushed out sections. I don't know why I did it really, but I knew it would hell if she didn't try to fix it now.

Still, she sat there quietly. I tried to strike up a conversation. "So, kiddo, what's your name? Storms aren't good for playing in."

There was a long pause before she asked softly, "Who are you?"

"I asked first," was my reply.

"Carmen." I stopped for a moment, but then kept brushing. I should have suspected this would happen. I glanced down at my pack and noticed that there were two packs of snacks stuffed under the clothes as well. Carmen knew. The ghost Carmen, anyway.

Before I could think about this, she asked, "So? Who are you? Are you here for Jesse?"

"What?"

"My brother, Jesse," she turned to look me straight in the eye. I could tell she was trying to be intimidating, but that's pretty hard for a kid to do. Besides, the hint of fear was clear on her face. She continued, "Are you the one Mr. Slater warned us about?"

I asked simply, "What did Mr. Slater say?"

"That someone was after him." Carmen went on strongly, "Why do you want to hurt Jesse? He's a good person who loves his family. He would never –"

I stopped her since she was about to breakdown into tears. God knew we were wet enough as it was. "No, no! I'm not after Jesse." Not in the way she was thinking anyway. I explained, "I'm from out of town and just got a little lost. I don't know anything about this." Yeah, so it was a half-truth. So sue me.

"Really?" She was considerably calmer now.

I sighed in relief, "Really. Here, swallow one of these before you get sick." I had taken out the box of Tylenol and punched out a couple of tablets. Handing her one, I showed her how to take them with a swish of water from my bottle. She was oddly quiet again.

When we settled back down, I continued brushing her hair out and made light talk. "By the way, my name is Suze. So what were you doing out so late, Carmen?"

She explained softly, "Mama and Papa were fighting. She wants to cancel the wedding because of what Mr. Slater said, but Papa said Jesse's accident was a coincidence."

It suddenly got a lot colder. "Accident?"

"After that man came, Jesse fell off his horse in pain. He is a great rider, so it was no mistake. Everyone is saying it is a sign that the threat should be taken seriously." She was pretty wordy for a six year old, but I chalked it up to those Old World manners I had always thought were endearing in Jesse. Lemme tell you, a little research from David told me a lot about how they educated their little kids in the old days. It was less of hopscotch and macaroni art, and more of droning lessons from old ladies in outdated clothing.

So like high school then, but instead of calculus, it's etiquette. Bleh.

I cleared my head, reminding myself of what I was doing here, and said, "Sounds terrible. Is he all right?" Hopefully the concern in my voice was more of polite curiosity rather than the nervous worry I was feeling inside.

"Yes, he's just been resting. But…" Carmen turned around again to talk to me in a low, cautious voice, "When I saw him, he told me secretly that he does not love Maria. He was going to cancel it before, but Mr. Slater's warning has given him a better reason."

I had to bite my lip to keep from smiling. But trust me; I was dancing on the inside.

Suddenly, Carmen frowned and muttered, "I hate her. She's horrible to us when Jesse and Papa aren't around. I wish she would just…" If she completed the thought, I didn't hear it. I knew how she felt though.

Trying not to grin, I commented, "I take it you don't like her."

She sighed, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that." There's that breeding again. As cute as it was for Jesse, I admit it was frustrating sometimes to get around them. In the present, there's no need for this demure stuff. Just say what you want, but be sure you can back it up with either proof and/or fists.

Then again, the present was the future now.

I patted her now dry hair comfortingly. "Don't worry about it. I feel the same way." In the sudden lull in the conversation, I noticed it was unusually quiet. The rain had stopped. "The storm's over. You should be getting home."

We both stood up and I hung the towels to dry on a rafter. Creaking the door open to have a peek, it was confirmed that even though the ground was still muddy, there wasn't any more winds or rain to worry about.

As Carmen squeezed between the doors, she stopped to ask, "But what about you?"

I did some quick thinking.

"Well, just do me a favor, Carmen. Let me hide out here." Feigning both innocence and ignorance, I continued, "I think I can help Jesse, but it's important that people don't know I'm here. Too many questions since I don't really fit in, you know? Our little secret." I smiled to help seal the deal.

Little Carmen smiled back broadly, "Right!" Then she dashed away, skirts still rumpled and dirty. She was still a kid after all, etiquette or no.

I blew a stray strand of hair out of my face and looked around at my bed for the night: a hay loft. It was no Holiday Inn, but it'd have to do. With the towels wet, there wasn't anything for me to cover myself with. No blanket was found in pack. I made do with simply changing into a pair of jeans, a new shirt, and a sweater. Feeling like some oversized woodland creature, I burrowed into the hay until I had a little nest to sleep in.

Before exhaustion and the Tylenol carried me off into a dreamless sleep, I wondered vaguely if Jesse was warm tonight too.

* * *

Brad picked at his food, a little too much on his brain for once. It was lasagna night and the goopy layers of pasta and sauce unpleasantly reminded him of Dr. Slaski's sagging face. He really didn't know why he was so bothered. Suze was capable of taking care of the situation. Brad could keep going about his business and Suze could keep kicking ghost butt or whatever it was she did. But now that he actually knew about this stuff, it didn't seem right to ignore it. He was brought back to reality when he heard his dad ask, "Do any of you know a Paul Slater?" 

"The guy who broke the door?" supplied Jake. "Yeah, he's in Suze's class."

Andy's eyebrow rose, but didn't comment.

Brad cleared his throat and asked, "Why do you ask, Dad?"

"Oh, just wondering. He called earlier and asked for Suze." Andy was pouring himself some more water and didn't notice Brad's eyes go wide. "I told him she was at CeeCee's for the rest of the weekend. _He_ better not be planning on spending the night too," he added as an after-thought.

Brad lost whatever appetite he had left. He excused himself from the table and dashed to the phone.

* * *

CeeCee lifted her head cautiously from where she was on the floor. Her room was a mess, but there wasn't any sign of what had just blown through the room. Just silence. The icy chill had been replaced by a sudden warmth. 

"Are you all right?"

She suddenly realized that the warmth was coming from Adam, who had covered her as whatever it was came and left. "Y-yeah, I'm fine." The waver in her voice wasn't just from the recent visit.

He stood and lent her a hand up as they surveyed the damage. Papers everywhere, chairs knocked over, and every single light bulb had been blown.

"Jesus," Adam muttered as he kicked aside some glass shards. "Why the hell would ghosts be after us?"

CeeCee frowned and answered quietly, "Not us." The only reason that thing didn't stick around was because the person it was looking for luckily wasn't there.

As if on cue, CeeCee's cell phone rang. It had been knocked off the nightstand and was under a few books at her feet. The number was Suze's house.

She answered it, slightly confused, "Hello?"

"Is this CeeCee?" It was Brad's voice. "Is Suze… are you guys okay?"

"A little shaken, but fine. And Suze isn't here anymore; she's with Father Dominic." She could hear him sigh in relief in the background and started to ask, "How did you-?"

"He called," was his blunt reply. It took a moment for CeeCee to realize he meant Paul. Brad continued, "My dad let it slip where she was. Listen, just get out of the house while you can, all right?" He really did sound worried.

"We're headed over to the Mission now." She added genuinely, "Thanks, Brad."

As CeeCee hung up the phone and stuffed it in her pocket, Adam remarked, "If this is how Paul woos Suze, no wonder she's been turning him down. Most guys try dinner and a movie."

She grabbed her house keys and said, "C'mon, we're going to the school. We need to talk to Carmen and Father Dominic anyway." CeeCee really hoped that Suze was okay.

Adam must've noticed her anxiety since he put his arm around her and smirked, "Don't worry, Velma, we'll catch those ghosts!"

Thankfully, the darkness hid her blush.

* * *

A/N: So many books had this weekend. Well, Mediator 6: Twilight was among them and it was interesting. I don't want to say disappointing, but it didn't do much for me climax-wise. A little too convenient. It was good for closure and canon though. Cute last chapter. 

I will, of course, finish this story anyway using the original plan out I had months ago. If you notice any similarities between this and Twilight from now on, it's purely from coincidence and prediction from before. Although I probably will use the names of Jesse's sisters from canon.

On that note, yes, Jesse will be in the next chapter, I swear. It's just _when _that chapter comes out that might be a bit sticky. Ah, well. I got another week off anyway. As usual, look to Xanga for any news on it.

And if you're looking for a new book to read, I suggest _Midnighters _by Scott Westerfield or _Sabriel _by Garth Nix.


End file.
